Phil Roy is a comedian, host, actor and entrepreneur. Dynamic and generous both at work and at home, over the years he has learned to listen to his body and let his heart speak, hoping to pass on the best of himself to his daughters. Interview with the most thoughtful of emotional people.<\/p>\n
Hello, Phil. You wear many hats and are the father of two young daughters; hence, you have a busy schedule. How much importance do you place on relaxing?<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cQuite a bit! I go for a massage almost every week, and as often as possible, because I\u2019m a very anxious person. I feel a lot of my anxiety physically: it\u2019s the cause of certain aches and pains, it affects the quality of my sleep, and therefore my energy levels the following day\u2026 Massage therapy helps me a lot in this respect.<\/p>\n I\u2019ve also had a swimming pool since we moved to the suburbs, and I swim a lot, it makes me feel better. But I don\u2019t just swim laps. I do handstands, I try to hold my breath, I do cannonballs, like a child! There are evenings when I swim alone for a long time and enjoy myself. It helps diffuse my stress.\u201d<\/p>\n Has relaxation always been part of your life?<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s something I\u2019ve learned to incorporate into my routine as I\u2019ve gotten older. In the beginning, running was my escape. It freed my mind. And that led me to recognize that when I keep my body busy doing something, my head is better able to reflect and digest what\u2019s going on in my life. For example, folding laundry is therapeutic for me. There was a time when I even took dishes out of my cupboards to wash them. I was washing dishes that were already clean! It relaxed me. When I don\u2019t take the time to sit down and observe how I\u2019m doing, my body speaks to me: \u2018Hey my friend, I just want to remind you that you haven\u2019t sorted this thing out, so here\u2019s a pain point in your left shoulder blade!\u2019 It\u2019s important to take the time to reflect, to have discussions with yourself, to identify what\u2019s stressing you out, because otherwise things build up and turn into physical symptoms.\u201d<\/p>\n What do you need to find balance in your day-to-day life?<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019d say the separation of spaces. My office is at home, but outside the house, which means I have to take my bag and leave the house to go to work, and that separation makes all the difference. Separate places help me to define moments. I\u2019m not one of those people who can open my laptop in the living room and be efficient. Even when I lived in an apartment, I went to caf\u00e9s\u2026\u00a0I even got a pass to a coworking space. I needed a place solely dedicated to work. In short, my balance lies in defining boundaries.<\/p>\n When it comes to work itself, I have a schedule and I stick to it. I don\u2019t wait for inspiration to strike. I already write down ideas on a daily basis, but when I decide to switch on my computer and work, I give it my all.<\/p>\n And when we go for a bike ride with the girls, I don\u2019t have a business call planned while I\u2019m at the park with them. I devote myself fully to the moment I\u2019m in, and that\u2019s something I\u2019ve learned to allow myself over time. I\u2019m learning that it\u2019s okay not to be available all the time. It\u2019s okay if I call the person back in the evening or the next day. And if it\u2019s really urgent, they\u2019ll find a way to reach me, send me a text message. Anyway, I\u2019m not an on-call surgeon either, I just make jokes, so we should be fine.\u201d<\/p>\n You\u2019ve often spoken publicly about the relationship you\u2019ve had with your body since childhood. Having invested a great deal of time and effort in understanding and healing this relationship, how do you see your body today?<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s funny, because I\u2019m still working on it in therapy, and I\u2019ve just come out of a session\u2026 It\u2019s definitely getting better, but I can\u2019t say I\u2019m completely cured and always look at my body with kindness. There are times when I find it more difficult. I\u2019ve often said \u2018This is going to be the struggle of my life,\u2019 but in the end, the further I progress, the more I believe that one day it will take up less space in my mind than it did before. I think it\u2019s always going to be with me, but I don\u2019t think it\u2019s going to be a struggle forever. I still want to have a body that doesn\u2019t bother me, but today that just means having a body that doesn\u2019t get in the way of what I want to achieve. I just want to be fit\u00a0enough to move the way I want to.\u201d<\/p>\n You<\/strong> weren\u2019t<\/strong> always<\/strong> predestined<\/strong> for<\/strong> comedy.<\/strong> When you<\/strong> were<\/strong> younger,<\/strong> you<\/strong> turned<\/strong> to<\/strong> it<\/strong> as<\/strong> a<\/strong> social<\/strong> shield <\/strong>to<\/strong> divert<\/strong> attention<\/strong> from<\/strong> your<\/strong> looks.<\/strong> How<\/strong> has<\/strong> your <\/strong>relationship with comedy evolved over time? <\/strong>\u201cComedy has always been my favourite means of communication. Today, I use it as a good icebreaker to talk about anything, but I\u2019m also working to make it more than just that, my way of communicating, both personally and professionally. There are times when what I say isn\u2019t funny!<\/p>\n I like to approach certain subjects with seriousness and authenticity, just as I like to approach others with humour. I\u2019m not cerebral, I\u2019m emotional. I have fun just by feeling things and communicating them.\u201d<\/p>\n Does the relationship you had with your parents influence your fatherhood and your relationship with your own daughters?<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t want my daughters to be afraid of me. Let\u2019s just say that my parents were quite authoritarian, I often feared their reaction to certain things, and I don\u2019t want my children to go through that.<\/p>\n But it\u2019s also true to say that my parents inspire me in a thousand ways. I have two brothers, and my mother has always encouraged us and followed us in everything we wanted to do. I also got my love of reading and culture from her, and from my father too, who was quite a reader at one point. And today, I\u2019m glad that Billie doesn\u2019t ask me to watch TV on Saturday mornings, but to read books together.<\/p>\n So in short, I\u2019ve taken the best of what I\u2019ve been given, I\u2019ve also gotten into certain habits, and I try to do the best I can most of the time.\u201d<\/p>\n Does<\/strong> your<\/strong> parents\u2019<\/strong> relationship<\/strong> influence<\/strong> the<\/strong> way <\/strong>you live your relationship?<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cNot only am I inspired by the couple that my parents were, but also the exes they are today.<\/p>\n When they were together, they shared passions, one of which was skiing, which they passed on to my brothers and me, so now I too want to share a passion with my daughters, whatever it may be.\u00a0\u201cSeparate places help me to define moments.<\/p>\n I\u2019m not one of those people who can open my laptop in the living room and be efficient.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Then, when they separated, I know they were sad, but they were also able to recognize that they had had a magical adventure together, that of having a family, and that even if it ended, it could still be honoured. It\u2019s important to let the water flow under the bridge, but let\u2019s not break the bridge. That\u2019s a lesson I learned from their relationship, and I apply it whenever projects come to an end. When a tour comes to an end, I refuse to never talk to the technicians in my life again, the ones I spent four nights a week with for years. We\u2019ve been confidants, we\u2019ve experienced something very intense together, and even if the closeness won\u2019t be the same in the future, I want to pay tribute to the experience we\u2019ve shared.<\/p>\n Now, even though they\u2019re no longer together, my parents are still able to spend time with each other, and even enjoy doing so. It\u2019s not unusual for both of them to come to our house for dinner, with their respective spouses.\u201d<\/p>\n What do you find hardest to let go of?<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cOf all the memories! I\u2019m sort of a collector, I have a hard time letting things go.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Phil Roy is a comedian, host, actor and entrepreneur. Dynamic and generous both at work and at home, over the years he has learned to listen to his body and let his heart speak, hoping to pass on the best of himself to his daughters. Interview with the most thoughtful of emotional people. Hello, Phil. 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